


Café Lilou, a Silly Love Story in Two Acts

by etoile_etiolee



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mpreg, graphic birth, mpreg Jensen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-04
Updated: 2015-12-04
Packaged: 2018-05-04 22:08:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 17,380
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5350214
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/etoile_etiolee/pseuds/etoile_etiolee
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jared Padalecki’s life is centered on the coffee shop he owns and loves. Now that he’s turning thirty, he’s thinking it might be time to concentrate on his nonexistent personal life. Just like magic, one cold evening, a man comes into the café in need of some help. Jensen Ackles is gorgeous, funny and everything Jared never knew he needed. The connection between them is immediate. Apparently, love at first sight does happen. Okay, Jensen might be nine month pregnant, and Jared practically living at and for his coffee shop… but what if those obstacles were in fact part of what faith has in store for them?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Act One

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Theatregirl7299](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Theatregirl7299/gifts).



> Disclaimer: None of this is true. I make no profits with this story. It is, nevertheless, my intellectual property.
> 
> Thanks to Candygramme for the fantastic beta work.

Jared doesn’t close the coffee shop often these days. After all, he is the owner of Café Lilou, and after seven years of working more than sixty hours a week, he can allow himself to have the evenings free and leave the coffee shop to one of his employees. But with Christmas coming, the mid-terms exams, and a worker who’s on medical leave because of mononucleosis, Jared has trouble filling the schedule.

He doesn’t really mind, though. It’s a Sunday evening, and for the past couple of hours the only clients Jared has had were a group of college students. The shop closes at nine, and come eight thirty it’s empty. Jared has taken the opportunity to start some of the tasks that are usually done once the place is closed, while making sure everything he needs to serve his clients is still working. If everything goes well he should be able to leave before ten thirty. He’s had a long day, and all he wants is to relax and drink a beer while channel surfing before going to bed.

Jared serves himself another coffee with a lot of sugar in it. He looks around and sighs. For him, knowing that he owns this small but successful business never gets old. It’s his place, his life. He'd bought the empty premises located in downtown Pawnee after he had finished college, with a little financial aid from his father. A lot of people thought he’d been crazy, opening a coffee shop two streets away from a Starbucks, with a McDonalds just down the block, but Jared had worked hard to distinguish himself. He serves good coffee, only fair trade grains that are ground using the traditional method. The large centennial coffee grinder is located in the shop, and his patrons get to watch the baristas using it to compose an array of blends. 

Jared also sells different products, all locally made: candies and paintings, wood sculptures, even poetry books and cd’s. He wants to encourage the local economy –the only things that aren’t produced in Pawnee or its surroundings are his coffee beans. When he had opened Café Lilou, he had a very distinct vision, and he had known there was a potential clientele for it.  
He’d been right, although it had taken almost three years before he started to make a profit. He'd made some sacrifices. He’s almost thirty, but he still lives in the small bachelor apartment he moved into when he started college, and has been single most of those seven years, his longest relationship having lasted eight months. He doesn’t regret it. Well, most of the time he’s fine with it. It is true that sometimes he thinks he’d like to wake up with someone by his side, but he’s still young, and now that the coffee shop is well established, he can make more time for himself. He’s learning to “let go”, as his friend Tahmoh would say. Sometimes, Tahmoh jokes that Jared fears the Café Lilou will vanish into thin air if he stays away from it for too long.

Maybe Tam is not that far from the truth -figuratively, of course.

Jared takes a sip of coffee and goes into the storage room to get the mop. When he’s back, pushing the large rolling bucket, he realizes it’s already nine. No one in sight on this cold night. Jared walks to the door, turns the sign from “open” to “closed”, and gets his keys to lock up. He’s still rummaging in his pocket when a silhouette approach rapidly, cutting through the rapidly falling snow. It’s a man, wrapped in a heavy winter coat, with a hat shoved on his head almost hiding his eyes, and a scarf that covers his mouth and nose. 

The man says something that is muffled by his scarf and the glass door, and Jared has to guess that he’s asking if the shop is closed.

He nods, shrugging with a “sorry” expression.

The man lowers his scarf. He’s doing this little funny dance, jumping on his heels without his feet leaving the ground. “Please, man, I have to use the bathroom.”

Jared is naturally a trusting kind of guy –which, he thinks, might have something to do with his shape: being six feet four with wide shoulders often gives away the impression that he could beat up someone quite easily, even though he’s the biggest klutz in town. Long story short: he’s not scared easily, and there is something desperate in the man’s voice that isn’t fake –well, at least, Jared doesn’t think it is.

Jared opens the door and make way for the stranger in need of the bathroom.

The guy runs –well, it’s more little jumping dance than anything else- straight inside. He’s already taking his mittens, hat and scarf off and doesn’t even slow down to look at Jared. He drops his stuff on a table then freezes so suddenly that Jared feels he’s going to fall forward. Either his coat is really strangely designed, or the guy is carrying some serious extra poundage, all located in front.

“Where?” he asks Jared, looking around like a deer caught in the headlights.

Jared stays silent for a second, having no idea what the guy wants to know. Then, he remembers and points toward the left.

“There, first door to-“

“Thanks,” the man cuts him off and disappears at the end of the hallway.

Jared wonders if he could have a medical condition. He hasn’t had the time to see him properly. His voice had sounded young, and his skin is pale, but that’s about it.

Jared waits next to the pile of winter items left on the table, still a little shocked by the whole thing. He doesn’t have to stare into emptiness, a little confused, for too long, because soon enough, the man comes back from the bathroom, a huge smile on his face. Jared figures immediately why he had seemed to have this strange, misshapen body, so large in the front, because the winter coat is open, and it’s obvious that the guy is pregnant, his huge belly sticking out, looking like it's stretching the cotton shirt that covers it to the max. 

As Pregnant Stanger gets closer, Jared realizes another thing: he’s astonishingly beautiful: his face is round, but it’s subtle, like all the weight he had put on has gone strictly to the belly. The features are delicate and perfectly defined: full, red lips, a straight nose with well-shaped nostrils, big, expressive eyes that are… in a second or two Jared will be able to tell. Green, yes, and when they blink, Jared admires the long and dark, curly lashes brushing against the pale skin.

Pregnant Gorgeous Stranger is now only a foot away from Jared, who is still frozen in place –like, really frozen, he’s convinced that if he tries to move, his feet will stay planted on the ground and he'll collapse like a broken statue.

The man's hair is mussed, of an undefined light brown that looks blonder under the light. He has freckles on his cheeks and on the bridge of his nose, and Jared can’t resist freckles –he never could. He looks to be in his mid-twenties. He’s tall -not as tall as Jared, but what else is new? Now that he has used the bathroom, he's no longer dancing from one foot to the other, although his stance is a little uncertain, and his legs are parted in a way that suggests bowlegs, but it might only be because of the weight he carries in front.

Pretty Enough To Be A Model Pregnant Stranger is talking, Jared realizes. He tries to snap out of his reverie.

“… so sorry about this, thank you so much, you saved my life. The kid’s favorite sport is to riverdance on my bladder, and like… I have to pee every ten minutes, and I was taking a walk, because my doctor says I’m not doing enough exercise, and of course I peed before I left my place, but then ten minutes later I needed to go. You can’t believe how unbearable it is. One second I’m fine, and the next I feel like I just drank a freaking pool of water, and it hurts, and that’s not the worst –I knew that if I didn’t find a bathroom soon I would have peed myself and… oh. god.”

The man blushes as suddenly as he had stopped talking. He scratches the back of his head and snorts. It’s adorable.

Jared figures he should say something, and he’s about to do it when the guy goes on. “Sorry, I talk a lot. I've got no filter, and it’s worst when I’m nervous, and now, I am nervous because I just exposed my peeing habits to a perfect stranger and… See? There I go again. I should shut up. I’m shutting up.”

“I’m Jared Padalecki,” is all Jared can think of saying, because, suddenly, it seems very important to him to learn the man’s name. He stretches a hand. 

“Jensen. Jensen Ackles,” Jensen Ackles answers, grabbing Jared’s hand and shaking it vigorously.

Jensen. 

_Jensen_. It’s a pretty name. Jared likes it. A lot.

“I’m glad I could be of service, Jensen.”

“My god, you totally were!” Jensen explains, patting his belly.

He seems a little short of breath, and Jared doesn’t want him to go, not now. 

“Would you like to sit for five minutes? You look a little tired. Or maybe you should call your husband, so he can come and get you.”

Jensen doesn’t hesitate. He drags a chair out and sits on it, careful to hold onto the back as he lowers himself slowly, hissing between his teeth. “Maybe I should wait a couple of minutes before heading back. I live like… ten minutes away from here, and I don’t have anyone to come and get me so… Wait. That sounded pathetic. What I meant to say is that I’m single, it’s just me and this little dancer,” he points at his bulge, smiling. He has the brightest smile Jared has ever seen. It makes the corner of his eyes crinkle. 

And Jared feels that warm sensation deep inside his belly, hearing that Jensen is single. What the hell is happening to him? It’s like he’s fallen in love sometime between opening the shop’s door and looking at Jensen Ackles carefully taking a seat.

It’s not… _like_. He is. Falling in love. Having the most intense crush in the history of crushes. Jared has loved before, but he’s never been instantly carried away by the feeling. He should feel sorry for Jensen, being single and pregnant, not opening an imaginary bottle of champagne.

“Do you want something to drink? Water? A coffee? It’s on the house.”

Jensen groans. “Don’t offer me coffee, please. It’s been nine months since I drank my last cup, and I still miss it every fucking day. The smell in here… it’s maddening. I’m an addict, no hope of ever being cured. When the baby’s finally born, I’ll ask for a freaking coffee pot and suck it all down with a straw.”

Jared smiles. “Water, then? Milk? Hot chocolate?”

He can see Jensen’s eyes lighten up at the mention of chocolate. Then he licks his lips. Jared has to take a deep breath to get his libido under control. “Hot chocolate it is.”

“With whipped cream on top?” Jensen asks hopefully. “And a little bit of cinnamon sprinkled on the- wait. No. You were closing. I’m holding you here. I’ll just have water and then-“

“Hot chocolate it is,” Jared repeats, clapping his hand together. “Look, it’s my pleasure. I’m the owner of the place, I can do whatever I want.”

He’s so concentrated on making the damn best hot chocolate in the world he doesn’t hear Jensen standing up and walking to the counter. 

“Really? This shop is all yours?”

Jared jumps and turns on his heels. Jensen has taken his winter coat off and is leaning against the counter, staring at a pile of brownies under the cake bell next to the cash register.

“Yes. It’s going to be seven years in March. 

“So, tell me Jared, how do you pronounce the name of your place? Café like in French, I get it, but… Lilou?”

It sounds like Lyle –loo. Jared is used to it. 

“Leeloo,” he corrects, dropping a huge spoon of whipped cream on the top of the warm chocolate. “It’s a French name for girls. I though it sounded… distinguished, when I choose it. I knew a Lilou in college. She was from France. The name, that’s the French way to write it, but the pronunciation is the same, more or less.”

“Lee-loo,” Jensen says in a low voice, a little scratchy and sexy as hell. “That girl must have been important to you if you named your coffee shop after her.”

Jensen winks, but he doesn’t seem sincere in his teasing –or maybe Jared is just imagining things. He answers quickly, eagerly. “She was a good friend, but I’m gay so…” He shrugs.

Jensen has a quirked up smile, and Jared must be crazy, because he’s almost sure he saw relief in Jensen's eyes. He concentrates on the plate he’s filling with the chocolate, a couple of brownies and a glass of milk for him, then invites Jensen to sit back at the table. 

“Those are for me, right?” Jensen has already a plastic fork in his hand, and he points it at the brownies.

“Of course,” Jared agrees. He was about to take one for himself, but Jensen has already dragged the plate toward him. Jared suppresses a laugh.

“I never saw you around here, even though you said you love coffee and live pretty close.”

“Maybe I prefer the Starbuck down the street,” Jensen says, then smiles wickedly. “Naw. I moved here five months ago, so I’m new to the area, and I do my best to avoid coffee shops. It’s too tempting. Don’t you worry, I’ll be a very regular customer as soon as the baby’s born. You’ll get tired soon enough of my stupid face.”

Jared has the sudden need to compose an ode to Jensen’s totally not stupid face. He clears his throat. “It seems like it will be pretty soon. When is your due date?”

“First of January. And I already look like I’m about to explode. I don’t know how I’m going to get through three more weeks of swollen feet and gastric reflux and peeing every five minute, not being able to find a comfortable position to sleep, or to sleep at all for that matter. And hemorrhoids are, literally, a pain in the ass.”

Jensen covers his mouth with his hand. His cheeks are of a deep cherry color. Jared can’t help but snigger. 

“See?” Jensen asks, uncovering his mouth so that he can attack the second brownie. “No filter. You didn’t need to know about my hemorrhoids. The thing is… well, I've made some friends since I moved here, like the awesome girl that lives next door in my building, but I’m used to… Back in Kansas, I have a huge family, and friends that I have known since kindergarten. It’s hard, sometimes, spending days without having a real conversation, that’s not over the phone or on Skype, and I’m used to talking a lot, so, yes, when I get the chance, the absence of filter is aggravated. Long story short, I say everything that pops into my mind.”

“Did you move here because of work?”

“Yes. Oh. Oh my god this is like… the best hot chocolate I’ve ever had,” Jensen moans through his mouthful. He has a layer of melted whipped cream on his upper lip and licks it clean. 

Jared looks away, because damn it, he’s getting hard. Like a teenager. He feels like he could come just from watching Jensen making love to his hot chocolate.

“Thank you,” he finally squeaks. 

“No, thank _you_ ,” Jensen says enthusiastically. “And my baby girl appreciates too. Gosh, she’s kicking so hard, just like when I eat ice cream.”

Jensen pulls back from the table to show his belly. Jared stares, fascinated. He’d never thought a baby kicking could actually be seen, but there it is, a series of waves distorting Jensen’s shirt. He finds himself laughing too and stretches a hand before realizing what he’s doing. He pulls back, blushing. Jensen surely doesn’t want a stranger’s big, clumsy hand touching his belly.

“No, what are you doing? Go on! You’re going to miss it,” Jensen says, grabbing Jared’s hand and pressing it on the top of his belly. It’s a little awkward because Jared has to lift himself a few inches from his chair and finds his stomach pressed against the table, but he forgets it immediately when he feels something pushing against his palm. Not once, but three times in a row, the warm tensed skin of Jensen’s belly stretching, then rippling, like a wave. Jared smiles so hard he’s afraid he’s going to pull a muscle.

“Wow. This is the first time I… Wow…”

Jared pulls his hand back. He feels his heart hammering against his chest. What the hell is happening to him tonight?

_Jensen Ackles is happening to you, that’s what._

“Thank you, for letting me,” he murmurs, staring into Jensen’s eyes.

Jensen stares back, biting his bottom lip. Jared knows right then that he’s not the only one feeling… whatever the hell he’s feeling. Love. Can love really happen that fast?

“Yeah, I got a job offer,” Jensen says quickly, and it takes a few seconds before Jared understands what he’s talking about. “I’m a blogger, and I do freelance on the side for other websites, and there’s this really funny one called ‘Deconstructing the Net’, heard of it?”

Jared shakes his head, feeling way too much disappointed at himself for it to be rational.

“It’s still small, but it’s been growing in popularity over the past couple of years. It the kind of website that explores the internet, finds the flaws and the hidden treasures. Sometimes the tone is funny, sometimes it’s very socially engaged. They were looking for a new editor, and they thought of me, because, apparently, my writing style and my blog are in the spirit of the website. The head office –if you can call it that, is located here in Pawnee. I couldn’t say no. Being a blogger doesn’t exactly makes you wealthy, and there is some potential for ‘Deconstructing the Net.’ I studied journalism in college, and I’m very excited about the whole thing. It’s like I’ve finally got my first serious job. Of course, the timing could have been better, with the pregnancy, as I was supposed to be followed very closely by the research chair of Wichita State University –they got me pregnant in the first place after all and-“

“Wait, what? The Wichita state university got you pregnant?” Jared must have heard wrong. Jensen speaks very quickly, barely taking the time to breathe between two sentences. It’s like he doesn’t have the capacity to stop once he gets going.

“Yes,” Jensen answers seriously. “Kind of,” he adds, winking at Jared. “That, my friend, is a long story and-“

“I’m in no hurry,” Jared cuts him off, not wanting that evening to end –like, _ever_ \- but maybe Jensen is tired, he shouldn’t push him. “But you’re probably eager to get back home,” he adds reluctantly.

“No, that’s not what I’m saying, “Jensen replies quickly. Then he frowns. “Unless you want to get out of here, which would be completely understandable given that-“

“Got no place I need to be, and now that you just told me a university got you pregnant, I want to hear the story.” Jared smiles what he believes is his most charming one, all dimples out.

“Okay, so, as I was saying, it’s a long story and I’m gonna need some fuel,” Jensen looks sheepish. And I saw that pecan pie on the counter so… I’m going to pay for everything, you know.”

Jared claps his hands together and stands up. “Want some ice cream with it?”

“God yes,” Jensen exclaims like he’s been starving for days. “And maybe a huge glass of milk.”

“Coming right up.”

“Great. I’m going to visit the bathroom meanwhile.”

Jensen has some trouble getting up. The table they’re sitting at isn’t the most solid furniture and it starts wobbling on its uneven feet when Jensen transfers his weight on it, trying to push himself up with both arms. Jared doesn’t ask, just takes his left elbow and helps him up. For a moment, they stand there, face to face, Jensen’s elbow still resting in Jared’s palm.

Jared doesn’t know what the other man is thinking, but he’s staring at him intensely. “Thanks,” he murmurs. “I gotta…” 

Jensen points toward in the bathroom direction. He’s blushing.

“Oh. Right. Sorry.” Jared snorts in a very not sexy way and let go of his elbow. By the way his cheeks are burning, he’s sure he’s blushing too.

It’s impressive, seeing how quickly Jensen eats his slice of pie, dragging his spoon on the plate to get the last drops of melted ice cream. Jared is known for his appetite –his gluttony, his mother would say- but he can’t win against Jensen and has only managed to eat three mouthful of his apple pie so far.

Jensen sighs in contentment when he’s finished and downs his glass of milk. “That was a fantastic pie,” he says with passion before leaning back against his chair, one hand resting on his stomach. “So,” he says with a little smile. “The Wichita State University did get me pregnant. Through artificial insemination.”

“Well, I had already figured you weren’t saying it literally,” Jared states.

“You’re a wise guy,” Jensen jokes, and Jared laughs like an idiot, because apparently, that’s what Jensen does to him.

“It’s been a while since I knew I wanted a kid,” he says softly. “And with my biological clock ticking forward, I didn’t want to miss my chance.”

Jared doesn’t understand. “But you’re… You can’t be more than twenty-five. Your biological clock should have calmed down.

“Dude, I’m thirty one,” Jensen says, lifting an eyebrow.

“What? No! That would make you older than me.”

Jensen seems to find Jared’s reply highly amusing. “I’m a carrier, it’s a biology thing.”

Jared knows. He’s had his anatomy and biology classes in high-school. Carriers are a lot more different from men than they appear. Of course, their hormonal system differs greatly, but they also share common physical characteristics. They tend to have delicate features and most of them don’t have enough body hair to even grow a beard. The average age of puberty is two years later than other boys, and a lot of them have younger looking features. It seems to have a correlation with the fact that their life expectancy is longer –not much though, but a year is still a year.

And that’s about everything Jared can remember from his high school class. Like all the other boys, he had a blood sample analyzed when he had turned fourteen, revealing that he wasn’t a carrier, and he'd never had a boyfriend that was one. Carriers count for only fifteen percent of the general male population.

“Have I lost you?” Jensen asks, bringing Jared back to the here and now. “Trust me, I’m thirty one. “

“I believe you.”

Jensen shrugs then, and starts to play with his fork. It takes a few seconds before he starts talking. “You know, most boys, when they have their genetic test done, they’re relieved to learn they aren’t carriers. It’s strange, but understandable. At fourteen, not everybody is certain about his sexual orientation, and discovering that you’re a carrier when you still don’t know you’re gay can be traumatizing.”

It’s another fact. 95% of the carriers are gay. It’s like nature has figured that it wouldn’t lead anywhere to give men the ability to conceive a child if they were mostly heterosexuals.

“And it’s not only that. Some people still consider us as freaks, even though it’s been more than two hundred years since the first documented case of male pregnancy.”

“I don’t,” Jared says quickly, because it seems crucial to him to let Jensen know.

“I can see that,” Jensen smiles, but his tone remain calm, more serious than it’s been since the beginning of their conversation. “Anyway, I didn’t feel that way. Don’t ask me why. When the results came back I felt… proud. Lucky, even, to have a body that would allow me to have a kid of my own. Like winning the lottery. I’ve always known it was something I wanted to do. It was in the back of my mind. But my love life hasn’t exactly been fulfilling. Longest relationship I ever had lasted eight… maybe ten months.”

Jared wants to lift his hand and say “high-five! Me too,” but he keeps silent, seeing how serious Jensen is suddenly.

“And you know, male carriers aren’t like women. There are very few pregnancies past thirty five years old. Seeing my thirties coming, the need to have a child got stronger, and I knew I would be running out of time. I told myself: screw it, and I decided to try artificial insemination. I didn’t want to miss my chance, you know?”

Jared has never felt the need to be a father. He wonders if it’s a hormonal thing, or a heterosexual thing, or if he’s just been too busy to have any personal life. The three options all seem valid.

“I heard artificial insemination is harder with guys than with women, like… the success rate is really low.”

“Ah! This is where the Wichita University comes in,” Jensen says, his eyes getting brighter. “There is a medical faculty there that specializes in research about male fertilization. They have developed new techniques –nothing freaky, frankenstein style, or cloning, or experimental drugs that would give you a kid with two heads. It’s safe –the worst that might happen would be not succeeding. They were looking for volunteers, and I decided to try –it was my only option anyway, because I never could have afforded a private fertilization clinic. The Medical Faculty doesn’t charge anything, but you have to agree to fill out never ending surveys and to be followed very closely by the batch of doctors that are working on the program. I was lucky. It worked on the second try.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah,” Jensen agrees, looking down at his belly and smiling, which is cute and adorable, and Jared feels hot all over. “Except that I got the job offer at the end of my first trimester, and they weren’t happy about it.”

“Well, you’re not a lab rat,” Jared replies, feeling a completely disproportionate anger at a bunch of doctors he never met.

“Exactly!” Jensen snaps his fingers. “In the end, we found a solution. They found an androcologist here that would collaborate with them, so I still have to fill out huge piles of paperwork and visit him once a week. And I have the job I wanted. It’s a tiny office on Peach Street, and the guys that are working there are awesome. They didn’t seemed bothered by my pregnancy. It’s a small team: four people, including me, and they can run the website without me for a couple of months.”

Jensen takes a deep breath and sighs. “…And I just now realized I practically told you the story of my life.”

“Naw, I don’t even know if you have any siblings, what’s your favorite meal, were you into sports in high school…” Jared jokes.

“One sister. Steak and no,” Jensen replies immediately.

They burst out laughing at the same time. Jared doesn’t want the evening to end, but he has the feeling it’s going to be the case soon. “Plus,” he says when his laugh has died down, “now you need to know everything about me, so that we’re even.”

“You are right,” Jensen says in an amused voice. “Let’s start with your name. Padalecki. It’s polish, right?”

“Yep. Third generation immigrant,” Jared says, pointing at his chest. “So I know basically nothing about Poland.”

“Is everyone in your family as huge as you are?”

There is something that could be lust, or at least desire, in Jensen’s eyes. That, or Jared’s imagination has gone crazy. 

“My older brother is taller than me.”

“Really?”

“Six feet seven inches. Three more than me.”

“You’re still a giant,” Jensen declares, then adds quickly: “I mean that as a compliment. It’s… you’re tall, I like tall guys, but not –okay, time to shut up now.”

Jensen is red from his neck to the tip of his ears. If Jared is honest with himself, he kind of wants to know more about how he has a thing for tall guys, but he takes pity.

“There is not much to say about my life, really. Grew up here. Always known I wanted to have a place, to work with people. I studied management and bought this place six months after I graduated, with a little help from my dad. I practically live here. No boyfriend, not even a dog. I’m a boring person, really.”

“You’re everything but boring,” Jensen says with intent, like he’s stating an important truth. “And tonight, you saved me.”

“Well, I let you use the bathroom.”

“I would have peed myself!” Jensen exclaims. “The humiliation you saved me from is almost like saving my life.”

Jensen smiles at him like Jared is the world’s seventh wonder, then starts to wiggle on his chair.

“My back is killing me,” he admits. “Not that I’m not enjoying myself, but I should head back home.”

It’s almost ten thirty. Jared knows better than to insist. It still feels like his heart is breaking in tiny pieces, like Jensen is his soulmate ready to go on a long trip from which he might never come back.

I’m going crazy, Jared thinks very rationally.

“You want me to drive you back?” He offers, seeing as how it’s still snowing heavily outside.

“Naw. Seeing as I ate enough sugar to fall into a diabetic coma, a short walk will do me good. Trust me, I live barely ten minutes away from here. I’m a big boy.”

“I know that.”

Jensen is already up, putting on his coat. “I should say a huge boy,” he corrects when the zipper of his jacket slides very slowly over his belly, the seams on each side stretched to their maximum capacity.”

“You’re not huge. It’s… It suits you. The pregnancy, I mean. Well, not that I ever saw you before but…”

Jared should shut up, and that’s what he does. Jensen is blushing again, head lowered, seemingly concentrating totally on putting his mittens on.

They walk side by side to the door. And suddenly, Jared feels like choking. He doesn’t want to let Jensen go. He doesn’t want for it to be the only time they’ll see each other, and to hell with the fact that he never takes the first steps in his relationships, or that he’s so nervous he might very well faint right there.

“We should…” He begins, shutting up when he hears his voice, way higher than usual. He tries again. “Would you… Would you like to go out sometime? With me?”  
 _Of course with you, idiot, geez, way to go, Jared._

Jensen lift his head and looks at him straight in the eyes. He has a soft expression on his face. “You know what?”

“What?” Jared squeaks –yeah, he downright squeaks, there is no other term to qualify the noise that just came out of his mouth.

“Ask me again when I won’t be carrying a dancing baby inside,” Jensen murmurs, pointing at his stomach. His voice is low, full of affection. Jared thinks he might be floating. 

“Yeah, I’ll do that.”

“You have your cell phone with you?” Jensen asks.   
Jared shoves his hand in the back pocket of his jeans and grabs his phone, showing it to Jensen like it’s a freaking treasure.

“Here’s my number, Jensen says, before telling him slowly while Jared types eagerly. You’ll text me yours. I’ll need it in case I’m in need of an urgent brownies home delivery.”

“We don’t...”

“I know, silly. Anyway, don’t look like someone just kicked your puppy, Jared. With the hot chocolate you made me tonight, I have the firm intention of coming back. Maybe even tomorrow. I told you. You’re not done with seeing my stupid face.”

“Your face isn’t stupid.”

“And yours is gorgeous,” Jensen whispers boldly.

He grabs Jared’s shoulder and raises himself up to the tips of his toes. His lips are on Jared’s before he knows what’s happening. They are soft and warm, their taste a little sugary. It only last a second before Jensen pulls away, but Jared is sweating and filled with the urge to laugh hysterically. He gets it under control, tries to play it cool and opens the door for Jensen.

“It was nice meeting you, Jensen,” he says calmly, smiling at him.

“Yes, it was,” Jensen trails off. 

They stare at each other for a few seconds, then Jensen readjusts his beanie and waves at him before walking out, quickly disappearing into the night.

Jared stays there, leaning his back against the door, already reliving the evening in his head. 

It takes him a long time to close the shop. He keeps stopping, too busy thinking about Jensen.

He’s definitely in love.


	2. Interlude

December seventh. It’s the day Jared had met Jensen, and he knows he’ll never forget the date.

Not that it would be easy. Texting to your best friend in the middle of the night that you’ve just fallen in love with the funniest, most gorgeous, very pregnant guy in the whole world like you’re a thirteen years old girl coming back from a boyband concert says a lot. Tahmoh texts him back a definitely sleepy text wishing him the best of luck, then adding a little poop icon, either because they’re trendy, or because he’s been awakened in the middle of the night. Jared can’t tell.

He’s there at the opening of the café the morning after, surprising Emily, his youngest employee, who comes out of the back holding her apron like it’s a weapon. She’s still very shy around him and is so nervous accomplishing her tasks that Jared takes pity on her and pretends to fall asleep working at his desk in the back store.

Come twelve, Jared figures he can’t live at the Café just waiting for Jensen to come back –if he is coming back. In the afternoon, he needs to make a deposit at the bank and tells the two employees on the floor to call him if they see a very pregnant man. “Is he dangerous?” Katherine asks, her blue eyes widening, which just makes Jared realize a little more how ridiculously he’s acting.

He feels a little desperate during dinner, which he bought at the restaurant on the other side on the street and eats at a table near the window. Jensen might very well not come back, despite having been so open the night before, even though he kissed Jared. On the mouth! He’s close to his due date, after all, and surely isn’t in the best of shape. He might have been told by his doctor to stay home to rest –it happens, right? Or maybe he needs to do as much work as possible for the website before his paternity leave. They’ve exchanged numbers, but he also told Jared to wait until the baby was born. He'd said it in a sweeter way, but the message had been clear nevertheless. Jared looks at the screen of his cellphone, at Jensen’s name displaying on the bright background. He doesn’t have a good reason to call him.

What should he do? He asks himself desperately. And the answer is simple but depressing. There is nothing to do. It hasn’t even been twenty four hours since he last saw Jensen.

_Go home. Relax. Watch a movie._

Yeah, because it will be easier not to think about Jensen alone in his depressing apartment after a couple of cheap beer.

“Are you okay, boss?” Dylan asks, passing by with a tray full of empty coffee mugs.

Jared hates to be called “boss” but after correcting him daily during his training, he’s given up. Dylan is a good employee, always seems to be happy to come to work and to serve clients, even the most difficult ones. He’s in college. Jared has forgotten his field of studies and, after a year, he can’t find a way to ask without sounding especially uncaring. Dylan talks a lot about school, but strangely, now that Jared is almost desperate to know, it’s like he never mention the damn name of his classes anymore.

“I’m fine.” Jared knows he sounds like he’s brooding. Because he is.

“Hey, new customer,” Dylan says, looking at the door who’s bell still ringing. “Another one stolen from Starbucks.

It’s a joke here at Café Lilou. Each time they get a new customer, they tell themselves it’s someone who’s discovered Starbuck sucks. 

“And I bet he’s going to help us get rid of all the muffins we haven’t sold today,” Dylan adds. “Wow, he really likes his food if his belly is any indication.

Jared’s head snaps up and his eyes darts toward the door. There is Jensen, standing near the entry, brushing the snow off his coat. Jared’s heart skips a beat, and he can’t help but wonder if someone can have a heart attack because of a happiness overload.

“He’s pregnant, and he’s my friend,” he says coldly, standing up quickly enough that his chair makes an awful screeching noise on the floor.

“Oh, I’m…”

Jared doesn’t hear the sorry. He walks toward Jensen with a smile that he hopes isn’t too hysterical. Jensen waves at him, cheeks red from the cold, his hat resting all askew on his head, so low on the left it hides half of his eyes.

Jared wants to take him in his arms and kiss him, which is a good enough clue that the feelings he had yesterday weren’t just a matter of circumstances after a long tiring day. 

He doesn’t, though. He stops a foot away, and opens his mouth to say… something. _It’s nice to see you again. How are you._ Or, you know, just “hi.”

Nothing comes out. Luckily, Jensen is as much as a talker as he was yesterday.

“Okay, I’ll admit, I thought about your pecan pie all day, and I resisted as much as I could. Went to see my doctor today, and I’ve put on five pounds in a week he did his scary bushy eyebrows and told me about boring stuff like losing weight after the baby’s born.”

“Well, we have fruit cups and yogurt.”

Jensen pouts. “What? I have those at home. I’ll have a slice of pecan pie, but I’ll drop the ice cream. It’s a good compromise, for me anyway.”

“Come and sit at my table,” Jared guides him by the elbow, making sure Jensen’s wide stance won’t make him bump into chairs, table or clients. “I’ll get your order, and I’ll join you.”

It suddenly comes to his attention that Jensen might not have come here to see him after all, but only because of the rich and seriously awesome pecan pie. He slows down. “Well, if you wanted to spend a quiet moment you don’t have to sit with me of course, it’s-“

“The pecan pie is good, but I totally came to see you,” Jensen admits boldly. “If that’s okay," he adds, less certain.

“That’s more than okay,” Jared exclaims, maybe a tad too loud. Some of the patrons are staring now. “There,” he points at the table, speaking more softly. “What would you like to drink?”

“I want to drink coffee,” Jensen says, frowning. He looks like a little kid that’s about to stamp his foot on the ground. “But a hot chocolate would be nice –cut the whipped cream, though.”

Jensen sits on the chair that Jared has just pulled out for him, letting out an “oof.” Then he adds, suddenly grumpy. “I’m a freaking saint, and I hate Dr. Capaldi. He’s scary.”

Jared restrains himself from running to the counter to prepare Jensen’s order, he’s concentrating hard enough that Dylan apologizing is like an annoying background noise. Only when the plate is filled does he decide to acknowledge him and immediately feels bad, seeing the poor boy’s distraught expression. “Hey, Dyl, it’s okay. I’m sorry I snapped. You didn’t know he was pregnant, stop apologizing please.”

A smile illuminates Dylan’s face. “Okay, boss.”

Jared cringes internally but lets it go.

At their table, Katherine is there, talking with Jensen like they’re old friends. It figures. She’s a little chatter box, they’re made for each other –well, not really but. 

Is it stupid to feel jealous of a seventeen years old girl?

Jared sits and tells Katherine there is some dishes to wash, which isn’t true. He doesn’t care. She nods, then does her thing again with her eyes opening wide. “Oh, you’re the guy Jared told us to watch out for!” She tells Jensen, then starts laughing. “I thought you were a criminal or something.”

Jared doesn’t think he can be redder, and when Katherine finally leaves, he finds himself speechless, lowering his eyes when Jensen gives him that maliciously amused look.

“Awww, you were watching out for me. That’s adorable.”

“It’s just…”

…Yeah. Still speechless. Jensen seems to feel a little bad. He stretches out his hand and pats Jared’s. 

“I really do think it’s adorable,” Jensen says softly. “And I would have been here this morning, except I didn’t want you to think I was crazy.”

Then, he attacks his slice of pie with ferocity, letting out the same sexy noise as the day before.

“Really?” Jared finally asks.

“Yeah,” Jensen nods, never taking his eyes away from the pie. “It’s… something special happened yesterday between us, right? I don’t think I’m making this up, since you had your staff watch out for me.”

“You’re not making this up.”

Jensen shakes his head. “Never happened to me before. You don’t want to know about my love life, it’s a very long and boring story with a lot of bad judgement from my part, and guys who were definitely more interested in owning my ass than talking about their feeling.” He drops his fork and scratches the back of his head. “Well, there goes my big mouth again.”

“It’s okay,” Jared says sincerely, and the smile that’s on his lips won’t leave them, he’s worried he’s going to start looking like a maniac any minute now.

“Anyway, Jared, I… Talk about bad timing, right? But I guess love is like that; you don’t get to choose when it happens to you.”

“You’re right,” Jared agrees, meanwhile, there is this internal fiesta in his mind because Jensen talked about love. It’s huge.

“So yeah, I came here to see you, and I want to come back tomorrow, and maybe the day after, and the day after,” Jensen makes a motion with his free hand. The other one is too busy holding his fork and clearing his plate. “Plus,” he adds in a lighter tone, “I got sent home from work today so I have a lot free time.”

“You lost your job?”  
Jared is devastated. And angry. It should be easy to find that small office and terrorize the geeks working there. Like Jensen has made all those sacrifices of moving away from home for nothing, he’s going to be a father, how cruel can those guys-

“Of course not.”

Oh. Jared laughs nervously. And tries to forget he thought for a second of beating up three strangers. Because it isn’t like him. He’s not crazy, right?

“It’s just… I’ve been having those false contractions –that are completely normal at this stage of the pregnancy, and it makes the guys nervous. They said I could work from home –which is true, we’re talking about a website, here. And they told me to get some rest. They aren’t wrong, but I’m not especially enthusiastic about spending my days in my apartment looking at the walls. My neighbor, Danneel, she’s great, but she spends half of her time at her boyfriend's place, so…”

Jensen shrugs. 

“Here I am. You are here, and the food is awesome, and the smell of coffee is even better.”

Jared nods enthusiastically. He does, however, notice the dark circles under Jensen’s eyes, and the way his breathing pattern seems strained, sometimes becoming very short. He notices the grimaces too, and the way the man shifts on his chair to find a comfortable position.

“You know, if you’re tired I could…” Jared swallows slowly to gather some courage. “I could visit you at your place. Bringing pecan pie and hot chocolate with me.”

Jensen smiles, but shakes his head. It’s bad. Makes Jared insides feel like they’re covered in ice.

“Don’t take it the wrong way please,” Jensen is pleading, his eyes darkening. “It’s just, I’m about to have a kid, and… This… It’s so sudden it scares me a little, and I have a lot on my mind right now. I was honest when I told you to ask me again after the baby’s born. Meanwhile, here, it seems like neutral ground, you know? It’s a good compromise. Because I don’t think I could not see you every day, or, well, maybe every other day, and it’s scary, what I feel for you, because… well…

“It is scary,” Jared agrees, relieved. “And I get what you’re saying. It’s just… I don’t want you to walk here every day –or every other day, you know?- You’re carrying a baby, and you have those false contractions and…. I don’t want anything bad happening to you.”

“I’m fine, and I do own a car, and I swear, it’s only a ten minute walk anyway. Plus, we already exchanged phone numbers. Don’t worry about me.”

“Okay,” Jared agrees. Except he will. A lot.

Jensen does come to the coffee shop every day for the following week. Jared and he spend hours chatting, and each time Jensen says he should head back home, Jared’s heart gets all twisted up. “We’re ridiculous,” Jensen says one day, as they are hanging out close to the door, like neither of them wants to leave. “We’re like… we’re even too much for those cheap romance books you can buy at airports.”

“I don’t care,” Jared says.

He doesn’t.

“I don’t care either,” Jensen replies, taking his hand off the door’s handle to lean back against the wall more comfortably.

Jared’s employees are aware of what’s going on, and Jared can sometimes hear them whispering and laughing. He doesn’t care. One day, Jensen brings his neighbor, Danneel, with him. She’s a beautiful woman, apparently very sympathetic, but Jared can feel her eyes on him the whole time, like she’s analyzing that big guy that has something going on with her vulnerable, very pregnant friend. He doesn’t mind. Finally, she seems satisfied, and her smile becomes more sincere. Jared is glad that she’s living right next to Jensen, and that that they seem comfortable enough with each other for him to ask for help if he needs it.

Jared thought he couldn’t possibly live at the café, but that’s pretty much what he’s doing, even though most of the time Jensen comes in later in the day. They talk for hours, learning so much about each other, and everything Jared discovers about Jensen, every small detail, is, if not pleasing, then surprising, adorable, or heart breaking. There this man in front of him whose heart is bigger than the place for it in his chest. He speaks of his family with such love, of high school with his eyes shining - he’s had such a hard time, not only knowing, early on that he was gay, but playing against him was also his physique. “Looking like a twink is an understatement in my case. I have those… features, you know, and before I put on some muscle and… Geez. I looked like a girl with my big lips and long eyelashes, and I wasn’t exactly into sports, so…” 

Jensen, though, has this ability to turn everything into a positive experience –some of those bullies who made his life miserable became his friends over time. And that’s only one example. Reading between the lines, Jared can guess from Jensen’s rare silences that he’s always been there for the people who count for him, that he doesn’t hold grudges, and that maybe, just maybe he might be a little naïve –the kind of guy that’s easily taken advantage of in his desire to help others and to have everybody happy around him.

Jared falls in love a little bit more each day. It’s different from the crush that hit him when they met. His feelings grow deeper and deeper, and he wants everything. He wants Jensen, he wants to be with him, and to protect him and to make him happy. He wants to help him with his daughter. That’s all he can think about. 

Christmas is getting closer, and the snow that was covering the landscape has melted, leaving a grey, gloomy look to everything. Jared is grateful for it because it makes Jensen’s walks easier. Usually, the holidays are a very stressful period at the Café, with lots of drop-in patrons, and so many people having days off work that he can’t count on the normal routine, where he knows the hours that will be busiest and can predict when to add an employee or even two. It always becomes a little more chaotic. 

It’s the first year Jared doesn’t really care, just does his best, so he can focus his attention on Jensen again. He doesn’t plan anything for the holidays, not visiting his brother in Philadelphia, or his parents in Boston. He doesn’t invite them home. He just comes to work every day and waits for Jensen.

Jensen will spend Christmas alone. His sister wants to come and help after the baby’s birth, so she’ll wait a few days before flying in. Jared is secretly happy Jensen doesn’t have any plans. He tells him the coffee shop closes at five on the twenty fourth and won’t open until the 26. He and Jared can spend Christmas Eve together in the deserted place.

Jensen agrees. 

This is, by far, the strangest but most wonderful Holidays Jared is having, and he knows Jensen feels the same. Why? Because he's told him. Numerous times.


	3. Act Two

There is one thing Jensen hasn’t been talkative about and that’s his daughter’s birth. Jared has seen pictures of the baby’s room, has seen a video of the last sonogram and has heard about the hundred and some names Jensen is hesitating between. He even knows that the sperm donor is a white male in good health, and that as part of the research program, his identity is sealed. That is without counting all the small aches and annoyances in the final stages of pregnancy –Jensen has even shown him his bare stomach, lifting his shirt during a quiet moment at the coffeeshop to point out one single stretchmark going from his popped up navel to his crotch, and while Jensen has been complaining that it had appeared only the week before, and that he had been so triumphant about avoiding the stretchmarks so far, and how unfair it was… Jared, well, Jared had tried to focus on the thin blue line that was apparently so ugly, and not on the creamy skin, so tense, speckled with rare freckles here and there, and how Jensen’s navel, even popped up, had been giving him a boner. So. Long story short, being the chatterbox he is, Jensen hasn’t left a lot to imagination.

But whenever the subject of the actual birth is mentioned, even vaguely, Jensen becomes strangely quiet. All Jared knows is that Jensen has asked for a companion, like it is described at the local midwives center, to be with him at the hospital. “I’m not doing the whole natural-midwife-home-birth, because I’m a wuss, I want a hospital, doctors and drugs. Lots of them.” That person is called Brianna, and her role is simply to support Jensen, so he won’t be alone. It might seem like a lot of information, but knowing Jensen, it isn’t. He doesn’t speak about his feelings regarding the event, doesn’t say if he’s scared, if he’s anxious, if the thought of coming back home alone with a newborn is worrying him. He’s great for telling funny stories about his bushy-eyebrowed, grumpy doctor, or describing all the strange dreams he’s been having since he hit the third trimester, most of them featuring him giving birth to everything but a human baby. Nevertheless, for the most serious, personal thoughts about the birth of his daughter, Jared has learned that even if he asks questions, he won’t get a real answer. Jensen is a master when it comes to changing the subject without it being evident. Jared gets caught every single time. He still hasn't succeeded in making Jensen promise to call him if he needs him, whatever the time or the circumstance.

He’s worrying a little. Jared has his own dreams about Jensen bleeding to death in his apartment, or not being able to reach the hospital in time, or the baby not doing well, and Jensen being alone to deal with it. They’ve known each other for a little more than two weeks, but Jared already feels more engaged than he has in previous relationships, even after months of being together. This is the strangest thing. All they had shared is that one kiss, but it’s like it’s sealed their rapport to each other, a silent promise, an engagement in the making.

“I wish I could be there when the baby’s born. I don’t want Jensen to suffer alone. I don’t want him to be in distress and not be able to comfort him,” Jared had told Tahmoh one evening.

His friend is a calm and serious person. He’s never met Jensen –his working hours prevent him from being at the café any other time than early mornings, but he gets how serious and involved Jared is. “If you guys are as close as you’ve been telling me, I think he would’ve asked if he wanted your help. Maybe it’s something he needs to do on his own.”

“With that Brianna, whom he barely knows.” Jared had replied, sounding like a brooding little kid.

“Yes, because she doesn’t really count. The way I’m seeing this –it’s all speculations of course- your almost-boyfriend has wanted this kid, has decided to go through it on his own, and the whole experience belongs to him and only him.”

Tahmoh has a way of _getting_ people, and Jared has known him long enough to trust his judgement, and, yes, that includes speculating about someone he’s never met.

All that’s left for Jared to do is to wait for Jensen’s daughter to be born and hope for the best. It’s easier said than done.

December 23rd brings with it a snowstorm that starts in the middle of the afternoon, despite the fact that all the meteorologists in the area have predicted a bright, warm day. It’s so sudden, it takes everyone by surprise. Jared only realizes it when the flow of customers starts to slow down. He’s been busy –Café Lilou offers gift-baskets custom made, and, as usual, most people (men especially) wait until the last minute to come and ask for one. 

So, Jared has spent most of his shift helping customers with their choices and then wrapping the baskets, the corner of the café reserved for this rapidly becoming a gift-wrapping war zone, with ribbons and glitter, pieces of paper and plastic everywhere. Katherine has tied Jared’s hair in some kind of bun with a glittering silver ribbon, stating that he looked sexy and that he had to fit his gift wrapper role.

And then, at some point, Jared finds himself having enough time to clean up the station and drink the now tepid coffee Dylan had brought him at some point. When he lifts his head, he can’t see the street outside. It’s snowing huge, vertical snowflakes carried by the wind. 

Jared doesn’t worry about Jensen being caught in it –for the past three days, they’ve only been talking on the phone and texting, Jensen has a bad cold, and he’s too tired to go out. He’s refused to let Jared visit, saying that Danneel was mother henning all over him and was trying to make fun of the whole situation, even if the fact that Jared could hear him coughing and sneezing every other minute at the other end of the line hasn’t played in his favor.

So, Jared texts him to give him some news, imagining him in his living room wrapped in a blanket with Danneel feeding him chicken broth, while he walks to the window.

Emily and Dylan are there as well. Katherine is preparing a latte for what Jared realizes is the only client left.

“So, a snowstorm.”

“Yep,” Dylan agrees. “Man, I’m flying to Denver tomorrow morning, I hope it will have cleared up by then.”

“It wasn’t even in the weather forecast,” Emily wines. “The bus schedule will be all messed up.”

“You should leave now, before the conditions deteriorate,” Jared tells her. “It’s not like we’ll be in a rush any time soon.”

Emily doesn’t protest, just thanks him and disappears quickly into the back store. Jared isn’t worried about Dylan –the boy lives two streets away from the shop, and since he’s supposed to take care of closing the café, Jared will stay with him and give him a ride. 

“Hey Katherine?” He calls. “When is your shift over?”

“Seven pm,” she says, with this hopeful look in her eyes, because she clearly knows what’s coming.

“Do you have your car?”

“Nope, it wouldn’t start this morning.”

Jared is relieved. Most of the time he thinks it’s a miracle Katherine’s car is holding together enough to be driven. 

“My dad gave me a ride, and he’s going to pick me up.”

“Well, what about you ask him to come at five instead of seven? I think we’ll have to close early if this goes on.”

Katherine does this funny little dance. “Yes! Thanks, Jared. Can I…”

“Yes, you can go call him now,” Jared completes.

The cellphone policy is to keep calls in the back store. The only employee Jared has had to warn a couple of times is Luke, who’s sick with mononucleosis. Jared knows his little gang are reasonable, hardworking kids. He’s been lucky.

“So, I guess it will be just you and me, boss, huh?” Dylan asks, giving Jared a complicit look.

“Did you get me a Christmas present?” Jared says as an answer.

Dylan’s face becomes beet red. “Huh… I…”

“Great. Here’s what I want for Christmas: my name is Jared. Ja-red. You are going to stop calling me boss.”

Dylan bites his bottom lip, like he’s about to protest, but one warning look from Jared and all he says is “Okay, bo-… Jared.”

“Good boy,” Jared pats his head and goes back to the gift wrapping station to finish cleaning up the mess. It’s not long before he gets a text from Jensen, answering his own.

_Cold is better. Don’t worry, not planning on going anywhere any time soon._

_Good, get some rest,_ Jared answers, adding a little kiss-blowing icon for good measure.

Jensen answers with a series of icons that have Jared blushing to the tip of his ears. Jensen is a master at speaking in icons only.

The rest of the afternoon goes slowly. All in all, Jared counts three customers, two of which just come in to warm themselves before going back in the cold. The snowstorm doesn’t show any signs of stopping. Katherine keeps checking the weather forecast on her phone and repeating what she’s seeing, which gets old pretty quickly. The storm is supposed to go on well into the night. Twelve centimeters of snow are expected. It doesn’t seem like much, but for a town like Pawnee whose winters are usually pretty mild, it’s huge. 

Jared has already decided to start closing up right after Katherine leaves. Meanwhile, he doesn’t try to keep his two employees busy and lets them work their usual tasks at a slow rhythm, chatting and laughing. It’s the eve of Christmas ‘Eve, after all. He sits at his usual table to go through some paperwork. He doesn’t feel like sitting alone at his desk in the back. Christmas music is playing through the speakers –Katherine has turned the volume up, way louder than usual, since the café is empty, and with the snow falling outside, when he isn't thinking about the hazardous drive back home, or all the shoveling that’s waiting for him, Jared is really getting in the holidays spirit. And … Is Jared’s shiny new love for Jensen making him see it everywhere, or are Dylan and Katherine exchanging very warm, longing looks, maybe touched by Christmas magic themselves? 

Jared smiles internally and gets back to checking his January orders. Time passes without a single customer. When Katherine’s father arrives to take her home, his huge mustache covered in snow and mumbling about outside being like a frozen hell, Jared makes a decision on a whim and tells Dylan he should hop in with them to get home. They’ve done a lot of cleaning over the last hour, and Jared doesn’t mind closing the café by himself. Dylan hesitates for half a second before thanking him. As soon as they’re out, Jared locks the door and turned the sign to “closed.” He can barely see anything. The sun has already set, and the wind drives the snow, blurring everything. Jared shivers. For once, he longs to be home, in his sleeping pants, looking at the world disappearing outside. He gets the cash register and sits back at his table to count the day's receipts. He has turned the music off, and all he can hear is the wind howling and the distant sound of traffic –everybody must be in a hurry to get home and safe. It will be hell on the roads.

Jared has barely started to print the credit card invoices when he hears an insistent knock at the door. He lifts his head, surprised, and all he can see is a dark silhouette gesturing toward him. 

It’s only been a few minutes since Katherine and Dylan left –maybe one of them forget something, although they both have the key to the backdoor and-

Frowning, Jared grabs his keys and gets to the door. He’s less than a feet away when he finally recognizes the person on the other side.

It’s Jensen.

What the hell?

Jared quickly unlocks the door, and Jensen all but falls into his arms, their feet entangling. The wind howls savagely while snow invades the cafe. With one arm, Jared pushes the heavy glass door closed, while he slides an arm around Jensen’s thickened waist to steady him. 

“What are you thinking, walking here in the freaking storm of the century?” he asks, more irritated than he intended, before taking a closer look at Jensen. His face is red from the cold, his lashes clumped in frozen tears. Snow covers his boots and jeans up to the thighs. He doesn’t have his mittens, his coat is unzipped, and he looks exhausted.

“I can explain,” Jensen says, his tone harsh because of the way his teeth are chattering. 

“Come on. We’ll be more comfortable in the back store.”

Jared doesn’t wait for a response and drags Jensen along with him. His whole body is now shaken by violent shivers, and he leans heavily against Jared. “I was stuck, I had to walk here,” he says, which doesn’t make any sense.

In the back store, Jared sits Jensen on the old couch and helps him take his coat off. Jensen’s shivers amplify immediately, but Jared finds the blanket he keeps nearby for occasional naps (he’s the boss; he can damn well nap if he want) and wraps it around his friend’s shoulders.

“What do you mean, you were stuck?” he asks, grabbing Jensen’s red, cold hands between his to warm them up. “Seriously what were you thinking?”

“I wasn’t thinking,” Jensen replies, looking a little guilty and a lot miserable. “My car got stuck on the side of the road two minutes away from here. It was easier to get here than to walk back home. I told you I live close by.”

“You should have called me. I would have come to pick you up!”

“I left home in a hurry and forgot to take my phone,” Jensen isn’t shivering so hard anymore, and he sounds irritated. “I… it’s all that damn OB nurse’s fault, anyway.”

Jared tries to understand, he does, but Jensen has a tendency to lose himself when he’s talking, and he sometimes needs a little direction.

“Okay. Start from the beginning.”

“Let me talk, and I will,” Jensen snaps, taking his hands out of Jared’s grip. 

It’s so unlike him that Jared doesn’t know what to think anymore. In the two weeks he’s known Jensen, he's never seen him impatient, or in a bad mood.

Well, two weeks isn’t exactly a long period of time, but it sometimes feels to Jared like he’s known Jensen forever.

“I’m sorry,” Jensen says immediately. “You’re right, I'm not making sense. Let me… huh… I woke up this morning with back pain, and it didn’t go away. It wasn’t really painful, you know, but it kept up all day, and at some point I realized it was coming and going in a regular pattern, like contractions, but it didn’t really bother me because… you know, contractions are supposed to get your belly tensed, and, well, to hurt real bad, but still, I should add in the fact that, this morning, I lost the mucus plug and-“

“Wait. What?”

“The mucus plug,” Jensen repeats, “it’s like… It’s this slimy thing that protects the entry of the uterus, and when it slides out it can mean it’s the beginning of labor but not necessarily right then at that moment. It can happen days before the actual labor starts, and Dr. Capaldi told me once there was this patient of his, it was like her fifth kid or-“

“Jensen. Focus, please,” Jared interrupts, because he doesn’t like where the story is going, doesn’t like it at all.

“Yeah, I should… well. Even if it didn’t really hurt, I started taking notes of the duration of my back pains, and the time between each one, and they were really regular, and I called the obstetrics floor of my hospital, because that’s what you’re supposed to do when you think you might be going into labor, and this nurse… She said contractions aren’t the same for everyone, and even that some people don’t really feel them until the baby’s practically born, even though it’s rare, and since my back pains were regular every seven minutes for the past two hours, plus the loss of the plug, I should come in just to get checked, you know? Why take the risk?”

“Are you still having them? Right now?” Jared is starting to panic. Slowly, but surely.

“Yeah, one just finished, so see? I can’t be in labor!” Jensen says, leaning back on the couch and sighing with irritation. “That nurse got me worried, and I couldn’t get ahold of Danneel, so I decided to drive myself. I didn’t even notice there was a storm until I was outside.”

“You should’ve called me.”

“I should’ve, but I’m not in labor, I didn’t want to bother you.”

“That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. We texted today, you didn’t mention anything.”

Jensen gives Jared another irritated look. “I’m not… obliged to you, Jared.”

It feels like Jared has been punched in the gut. It hurts even more. Jensen is right. That’s the worst of it. And that’s something Jared’s been very careful not to think about in the past weeks.

“I drove,” Jensen goes on, looking uncomfortable and almost sad. “Too much snow, my car got stuck to the side of the road.”

“And here you are.”

“Here I am,” Jensen whispers. 

“I’m going to drive you to the hospital,” Jared declares. 

It’s like he hasn’t known whatever was between them was so fragile - like he’d refused to see it, and now it’s broken, because of a simple sentence and a cold look.

Jensen nods and wiggles to the edge of the couch to stand up. Jared wants to help him, real bad, but now it’s like he doesn’t know what his limits are anymore, and what he can say, or do. He turns his back so as not to see Jensen struggling. After all, he’s living alone, he doesn’t have a helping arm each time he needs to stand up.

“I just need to go to the bathroom.”

“Alright.”

Jensen stops near the door and turns to look at Jared, who’s putting his boots on. He scratches the back of his head, something he does each time he’s embarrassed, Jared has come to learn. Jared doesn’t want him to feel bad, not in the state he’s in, and he tries for a smile he knows has fallen flat.

The bathrooms are near the back of the store, at the end of a small hallway, and Jared can hear Jensen making his way to it, slow, heavy steps, while he himself finishes tying his boots. There is a moment of silence where he should hear the heavy bathroom door creaking its way open, but it doesn’t. Jared frowns but doesn’t stop and goes to grab his coat that’s sitting on his desk. 

“Jared!” 

Jensen’s voice is all wrong, filled with panic, and very close. Jared drops the coat and goes to find him, almost bumps into him outside the door where he leans heavily against the wall, his legs parted wide. 

“Jensen?”

“I huh… don’t think I need to go to the bathroom, finally” Jensen says, trying to take another step toward him. He stops, grabs Jared’s shoulder with one hand. He’s going to go down. Jared holds him up, sliding both arms under his armpits. He tries to drag him back to the couch but Jensen won’t budge.

“I can’t!” Jensen cries. “It… I feel something down there, my god, Jared. I think it’s the baby’s head!”

“What?”

“Help me please we gotta… I gotta take my pants off I’m…”

It’s probably the surge of adrenaline that helps Jared pick Jensen up despite his protests and carry him to the couch without even feeling a strain in his muscles. Jensen ends up on his back. He’s shaking, fighting with his pants to take them down.

“Please come on. Please help me,” he pleads, his voice tinted with hysteria.

Jared doesn’t even think. He yanks Jensen’s boots off his feet, hearing the leather rip since he didn’t unlace them. They come, with some effort, then the pants follow –Jensen has already pulled them mid-thigh, along with his underwear that, Jared notices, are stained with bloody fluid. 

“Oh, shit,” he murmurs, taking a look between Jensen’s legs. He parts them wider, not listening to what Jensen is telling him, because hell, Jensen is right. There is something round and bloody there, god, and it can’t be anything else besides the baby’s head.

Jared grabs the corner of the blanket Jensen had left on the couch and tries to clean up the area a little bit, because he has to be sure, it can’t be happening, right? Babies aren’t born like that. There is a lot of huffing, and yelling, and counting and insulting the doctor and nurses. It takes forever.

Jared presses the cloth around Jensen’s birth canal and a flow of warm water gushes out, cleaning up the small, scrunched-up face of the baby.

“Oh, my god, oh my god, Jensen, you’re right the baby’s head is…”

“Jared,” Jensen warns in panic, “Jared, I need to push, I need to push real bad.”

“Wait-“

But Jensen doesn’t listen, or can’t. He bends his knees, get ahold of the couch with both hands, and his body gets tensed like a bowstring. He growls like an animal, shaking, and Jared catches the baby that’s sliding easily out of the birth canal, and he watches in shock as the small bundle resting in his hands starts to wiggle, tiny arms jerking open. Then a fragile wail fills the room. It’s… She’s crying, she’s angry, if her scrunched-up, red face is any indication. Jared burst out laughing, still trying to process what the hell just happened, how he came to hold a newborn in his arms.

He only then realizes Jensen is speaking to him, repeating again and again. “She okay, is she okay, Jared? Fuck, talk to me, is she alright?”

Jared snaps out of his stupor and nods. He’s still laughing, and he feels tears pricking his eyes but whatever. He’s holding Jensen’s newborn daughter. He has the right to lose control over all of his emotions at once. He lifts the tiny baby up a little, so that Jensen can have a look at her. “She’s fine. Look at her,” he says in a shaking voice, “You… Jensen, you…”

“I wanna hold her,” Jensen says, then he bursts into tears, loud, hysterical sobs, and all Jared can do is cry too. He uses the blanket to cover the baby and holds her out to Jensen who’s mumbling soft, endearing words between hiccups, his face red and swollen, clear snot sliding down his nose.

Jared stays immobile for a few seconds, looking at the both of them, his own emotions way too strong for what he’s used to. It’s the sight of the umbilical cord, still attaching the baby to Jensen, and the small but steady rivulet of bloodstained fluid that’s sliding out of Jensen’s birth canal that has him snapping back into action. He takes his coat to cover Jensen’s legs, because he’s still shivering, then grabs his cell phone from his back pocket and call 9-1-1.

The first information he gets is that, because of the storm, it could take at least half an hour before they are reached by an ambulance. The operator asks a series of questions, about Jensen’s state, and the baby’s, and then gives him instructions as to what to do.

It’s good being so busy that Jared doesn’t have time to think. He has to check first if Jensen is bleeding a lot –he isn’t -then he has to assess if the baby’s coloration is good –it is- and if Jensen is holding his own. His teeth are still chattering, and he has this expression on his face –a mix of stupor and awe, but he doesn’t look bad, given the fact that he’s just expelled a baby without even realizing what was going on. When Jared touches his forehead, he finds it hot and damp, maybe a little too hot for his liking, but the operator reassures him that all those symptoms are from the shock of the delivery, and that the important thing is to keep Jensen and the baby warm until the paramedics get there.

Jared finds a pile of folded tablecloths in a drawer and uses them as makeshift blankets, then he listens careful while the operator explains to him what to do if Jensen begins expelling the placenta before the paramedics arrive. The whole thing must have taken five minutes, at best, but when Jared has the permission to put the woman on hold, he feels drained. 

He turns his attention toward Jensen and helps him settle more comfortably, sliding some rolled up aprons under his head to support it. Jensen is pliant, letting Jared do what he has to, all of his attention given to his daughter who is still crying, although more softly. 

“Hey, Jensen?” Jared kneels besides him, rubbing his arm softly, as if Jensen is made of glass and could shatter at any second. “The ambulance will be here soon, alright?”

Jensen nods, tucking his daughter into the crook of his right arm so he can wipe the tears off his face. 

“Do you feel like… that placenta thing is coming out soon?”

Jensen gives him a confused look. “How can I? I barely felt her coming out,” he says, nodding at the baby, and his voice breaks on that last word. His chin starts trembling. New tears fill his eyes. “Look at her, she must be… so shocked… I almost had her in the bathroom,” he croaks, caressing the soft dark hair on his baby’s head. “All this because I’m too stupid to know when I’m in labor.”

“What? Don’t say that. It’s not your fault, you told me you didn’t feel any pain.”

“I should’ve figured it out,” Jensen murmurs. “If you hadn’t been here, what would have happened?”

Jared takes Jensen’s chin between his fingers and turns his head, so that he will look at him. “I was here. And now your baby girl is born, and she’s doing fine. That’s all there is. You… You were great.”

“I didn’t do anything,” Jensen protests. “You caught her. You did a fantastic job, even after I was a jerk with you.” 

Jensen swallows back a sob. What he’s saying doesn’t make a lot of sense, but given the fact that he gave birth less than five minutes ago, is it surprising?

“And I was supposed to let you deal with the delivery on your own, ‘cause you’ve been a jerk? Which, you weren’t, by the way.” 

“I was.”

“Okay, well, I didn’t have to talk to you like that. I was worried about you. Fuck, Jensen, can’t you smile for me? You have your baby in your arms, nothing went wrong, I need you to smile and tell me you’re okay.”

Jensen sniffs and nods, closing his eyes, like he’s concentrating. The baby isn’t crying anymore. Her dark eyes are opened to slits, and, despite her face being swollen and covered in red blotches, she’s beautiful. And she’s Jensen daughter –Jared is barely objective. 

“Yeah okay,” Jensen whispers after a few seconds of silence. “I’m… It’s all too much, you know, but I’m okay, I swear,” he says, and he does smile without it seeming forced. “And I think I’ll try to feed her. The colostrum is important. They told us in the prenatal class that a baby can take the breast right after the birth.”

Jensen lifts his t-shirt up without too much difficulties. Jared is fascinated, doesn’t even ask if it’s okay to look. The breast is almost as flat as his, but the nipple is darker, slightly swollen, a pearl of yellowish, thick milk is already bubbling in the middle. 

“There you go, honey,” Jensen whispers, getting the little opened mouth as close to the nipple as possible. Almost instantaneously, the baby closes her lips over it and starts sucking, letting out the most adorable snuffling sounds through her tiny nose. 

“Wow,” Jared says, still staring. “Wow, it’s… Jensen it’s…”

“Feels strange,” Jensen admits, letting out a nervous laugh. Kind of tickles.”

He’s about to add something but winces instead, shifting his hips. “Geez, Jared I… gotta push again, I think.”

The placenta stuff, Jared remembers. He gets to the end of the couch and uncovers Jensen’s legs, immediately noticing a red mass sliding out of the birth canal. Jensen groans, lets out a hiss, but it last only a second, until the placenta is out.

“S’it done?” He asks, catching his breath.

Jared doesn’t answer. He’s supposed to wrapped the placenta in a towel because the paramedics will want to examine it, then he has to tie a shoestring around the umbilical cord to stop the blood flow that goes from the placenta to the baby. He had agreed to everything the 9-1-1 operator had said without really knowing what she’d been talking about, but now, he downright panics. The placenta is a monstrous thing that looks like a giant piece of beef liver crisscrossed by veins. It can’t be normal. It can’t.

“Jared?” 

“Yes, I… It’s out… Wait a second it’s…”

Jared doesn’t know how to hide from Jensen that something is wrong, and if he gets back to the 9-1-1 operator to tell her, he’ll know for sure -Jared doesn’t really have the choice, though, because there has to be something he can do to help! What if… What if this thing is Jensen’s uterus, expelled with the baby, or a twin that’s been dead inside for some time and the doctors didn’t notice it? What if?

Jared is sweating profusely, he can feel it, dripping down his forehead. His heart is beating so hard in his chest it kind of hurts, and his stomach is churning, stating that it wouldn’t be opposed to the idea of sending up everything Jared has eaten today.

“I…Jensen…” He says, but he can’t go on.

“What’s the matter with you, you’re white as a sheet,” Jensen worries. “I know the placenta isn’t something nice to look at, but is that it or is something wrong? Jared?”

“I don’t think it’s normal,” Jared admits. “I’m sorry, it can’t be normal, Jensen I don’t know what to do.”

“Normal in which way? It’s a bloody mass with the cord attached to it. Let me see.”

“Whu?”

“Show it to me, the baby’s feeding, and I can’t reach that far.”

Jared takes a clean washcloth he had kept especially for the placenta and grabs it, grimacing when he feels how warm it is, he’s almost scared it’s going to move. He holds it as far from him as he can, still being careful not to stretch the umbilical cord and brings it close to Jensen, trying not to gag when he feel some dampness soaking through the cotton of the cloth and wetting his hand.

Jensen stretches his neck to look at the placenta. “It’s okay, Jared,” he says, trying to repress a smile. “It’s what a placenta is supposed to look like.”

“Are you… sure?”

“Yeah I’m sure,” Jensen grins now. “I saw pictures. Can you take it away from my face now?”

Jared nods. He wraps the placenta in another towel, so he won’t have to look at it, then adds a plastic bag for good measure, and puts it on the couch next to Jensen –but not too close- because the baby is still attached to it. Time to cut the blood flow now.

Jared grabs the clean lace he had found in his desk drawer as he was speaking to the 9-1-1 operator. The umbilical cord aspect isn’t much more appealing, and Jared grimaces when he sees the membrane strangled by the tightest knot he could achieve. He realizes he’s been holding his breath during the whole operation, and it’s a relief to take a deep, hiccupping breath while he wipes the blood from his hand. He sits back on his heels and concentrates on breathing, to try and rid himself of the nausea. Only then can he hear Jensen’s laugh. He looks at him, hesitating between sharing his hilarity and being insulted, but it’s hard to remain serious, when Jensen’s eyes are reduced to slits and his whole upper body is shaken by laughter. 

Jared smiles despite himself. “What’s so funny? I’ve never seen a placenta before… I was… I was scared it was your uterus or something even worse.”

“My uterus?” Jensen asks, then is shaken by another bout of laughter, enough to disturb his daughter’s feeding, and she shakes her head like she wants to bury herself in Jensen’s chest. She rediscovers the nipple and latches on it while Jensen tries to calm himself down. 

“It’s not that funny,” Jared pouts,

“Oh yeah it is. Should’ve seen your face, man,” Jensen pants. 

“Give me a break, I just caught a baby coming out of a human being,” Jared protests. “Even more so, a human being I’m very fond of.”

Jensen looks at him, a playful smile still quirking his lips up. “Is that so?”

“Yes, it is,” Jared murmurs, lifting himself onto his knees to kiss Jensen’s cheek. 

The other man blushes and lowers his eyes, then shrugs. “Why the hell am I blushing now?” he mumbles. “You just saw parts of me I would have preferred to show you in very different circumstances. I mean, you got an eyeful.”

It’s Jared’s turn to blush. “It wasn’t like that. I don’t even remember what I saw… I mean, at no point did I tell myself, hey, here’s Jensen penis, it looks very nice. You had a baby coming out of you.”

Jensen laughs again, but more calmly. Jared can tell the birth is starting to take its toll on him. And he wishes the paramedics would hurry. He wants Jensen and his daughter safe, examined by a doctor. 

“Well, just so you know, my dick _is_ very nice,” Jensen murmurs. 

“It’s something I’ll have to find out.”

The answer seems to please Jensen. He stares at Jared with affection for a few seconds, then tilt his head to look at his daughter. She's still sucking, but barely, like she needs to sleep between gulps. She’s wonderful, and observing her is making Jared wonder why he’d never been interested in having kids. He’s in love with the baby girl he just helped be born. The feeling has been instantaneous, blooming in him like a flower, as he held her, watched her take her very first breath. He was the one to witness it all.

“Your daughter is perfect, she is Jensen, she’s… She got me, the second I held her,” he whispers, and he can’t help himself. He caresses the small head with his huge hand, feeling the softness of her hair and the warmth of her skin. It immediately helps lower his stress level, which is pretty damn high, now that he thinks of it. 

“I never thought it would feel so intense,” Jensen admits. “I mean, I’ve been loving her ever since I got pregnant, but now it feels a lot like my heart doubled in size instantly, you know what I mean? It's wonderful and painful at the same time. And now, I’m getting way too dramatic, I should shut up.”

“You always say that, but you never stay silent for long.”

“True,” Jensen agrees. “Does it bother you?”

“I love it,” Jared says, without hesitation. And now…” He clears his throat and winks at Jensen. “Now that your baby is born, I have to ask you something. Would you like to go out with me sometime?”

Jensen stares at him, his eyes bright and playful. “Yes, I would very much like to go out with you. On one condition, he adds,” which has Jared’s heart skipping a beat right there.

“What?”

“The ambulance can’t be far away now, and… I can smell it, you know?”

“What?” Jared is confused.

“The coffee,” Jensen says with affection, like he’s talking about an old friend. 

“Are you serious?”

“Come on, Jared, just a couple of sips, I take it black and strong.”

“You… are you sure it’s okay?”

“It’s coffee, not heroin, and I’m not pregnant anymore.”

Jared nods slowly and lifts himself up. The adrenaline surge that has had its hold on him is slowly dying down, and is replaced by an exhaustion, mental and physical, he can feel in his bones. It’s tough just to hold himself up. “You got me wrapped around your little finger, you know?” he sighs like he’s been asked an impossible task.

“I know,” Jensen nods. I just had a baby, it will be my reward.”

“The baby _is_ the reward,” Jared says out loud while he’s heading to the expresso machine.

He won’t serve Jensen coffee that has been heating on the burners for the past hour. Jensen’s first coffee after nine months of abstinence has to be worth it.

And the smile the man is giving him when Jared comes back with the small cup is also worth it.

The paramedics arrive forty minutes after the baby’s birth. Jared hadn’t noticed the time ever since Jensen arrived, but as the two men take care of Jensen and the baby, he takes a look at his cell phone and notices that the call he made to 9-1-1 had been at five twenty five, which means that the baby’s birth has taken all but ten minutes. It’s overwhelming when you stop to think about it. Jared doesn’t know if it’s the shock of it all still trying to make sense into his mind, or the endorphins doing wonders, but he feels ecstatic, despite the tiredness. The sensation of happiness that is giving him the energy to keep standing up and not collapse in a corner, living his stress, now that the ambulance has arrived, and Jared isn’t responsible anymore, is very specific. He doesn’t remember ever having felt like this before.

Jensen has a lot to say, now that the paramedics are here. He tells the story in detail, despite being interrupted numerous time by them, as they take his blood pressure and assess his general state as well as the baby’s. Jensen doesn’t care. He keeps up. “I swear to god I never knew I was in labor. Have you guys ever seen this? I mean, she practically slid out of me, I think I pushed for ten seconds total. Seriously, guys, does something like this happen often?”

“We’ve been on this kind of call before,” the youngest paramedic, who seems to be especially amused by Jensen’s loquacity, answers. “It does happen, but it’s still exceptional.”

“Jared did it all,” Jensen continues enthusiastically, not caring that his interlocutor is working between his exposed legs. “He was great, I don’t know what would have happened if he hadn’t been there.”

“You were lucky to have him,” the older paramedic agrees. 

“More than lucky. Can I have something to drink, I’m so thirsty.”

“Sorry man, we’ll have to wait 'til we get to the hospital, just in case. It’s the rules.”

Jared and Jensen exchange a quick look. The empty coffee cup is resting innocently on Jared’s desk.

Older Paramedic has been busy with the baby. He’s cut the umbilical cord and examined the placenta –while Jared was looking away- then has used a small pump bulb in her mouth and nose. She’s now wrapped up tightly in a red blanket and fast asleep, back in Jensen’s arms.

“She’s doing good,” the man tells Jensen. “Do you have a name for this beauty?”

“I had about a hundred one, but, you know, I thought I would wait and see. I believe I would find the perfect name at the right time, so I guess… I guess she’ll be a little Leeloo.”

“It’s the name of this place, right?” The older paramedic asks. “It’s lovely.”

Jared can tell himself all he wants that Jensen’s choice of name doesn’t affect him, but his eyes are wet, and he feel all warm and mushy inside. He doesn’t speak right away, because he doesn’t trust his voice, but he smiles like an idiot, and Jensen smiles back to him.

It’s Jensen’s turn to be carefully covered with a couple of sheets and a red blanket, securely tied up on the stretcher. 

“We’re good to go,” Young Paramedic declares. “If dad wants to ride with us, there is no problem,” he adds, looking at Jared and waiting for an answer.

Jared, in return, looks at Jensen. They have a silent conversation. It would be complicated to tell how they are related to each other in reality, right? And Jensen really wants Jared to ride with them. Jared agrees. He doesn’t like the idea of being separated from Jensen and Leeloo right now. He’ll probably never like that idea.

“Yes, he’s coming with us,” Jensen answers for Jared, because right now, they understand each other perfectly.


	4. Curtain Call

Jared closes his eyes when Dylan climbs on the stool –the boy goes too fast, but then again, it’s Jared’s fault, because he wants the new sign to be up before Jensen’s arrival. Once Dylan is up, though, he gets himself centered, unhinges the old panel and holds it down to Jared. Jared puts it aside –he wants to keep it as a souvenir: he already has a place on the back wall of the shop for it. Then, he takes the new sign. Tahmoh’s wife, Alaina, is an art teacher, and she was more than happy to create if for him. It’s beautiful.

“You ready?” He asks.

“Yes, boss.”

Jared rolls his eyes and climbs his own stool. It’s not that high, and he takes hold of the wall to stretch, which gives Dylan time to grab his end of the sign. Then, it’s a matter of minutes, sliding the metal hooks into the holes, so that the sign will be held at the end of two thin metal chains.

Jared gets down from his stool and walks back a couple of steps. It’s perfect. He lifts a positive thumb at Dylan who claps his hands and smiles proudly, like they just accomplished some incredibly difficult task. 

“Okay, let’s get everything inside.”

“Alright, boss.”

“Dylan…”

“Jared. I meant Jared,” the boy corrects himself, like he does every single time. Some issues will never be settled.

They do make a good team, though, and Jared knows the value of a good employee, even if that employee is a little bit like the caricature of what he’s supposed to be. Jared is taking way more days off work, these days, and he still hasn’t found a proper assistant manager, but Dylan has done a terrific job so far, and if it wasn’t for the fact that college forbids him to take more hours, Jared would definitely give him the job officially.

They store the material away, and Jared looks at his watch. Leeloo’s nap is usually over around three, three or three thirty in the afternoon, which means Jensen should be here soon. He thanks Dylan and goes back outside, holding two goblets of coffee. It’s a beautiful March day, warm and dry, Jared has been waiting for spring with impatience this year, if only because he can’t stand to hear Jensen complain about the cold one more time. He does understand it, though –everything is more complicated with a newborn in the winter, and this year, Pawnee’s winter has been incredibly cold.

Jared stares at the busy street toward the north, eager to see Jensen and Leeloo, and to watch the surprise in his boyfriend’s eyes when he sees the sign. He’s impatient. It doesn’t get better with time, or, well, it hasn’t, so far. He misses Jensen the minute they’re not together, and let’s be honest, it was a difficult beginning for their relationship. Instant love for each other, sharing the conviction that they are soulmates doesn’t not instantly grant them the perfect life together. Jensen is a new father, Jared always made his business the center of his life. There have already been moments where they thought it just wouldn’t work, that they had met at the wrong time, but, luckily, as time goes by, it's becoming easier. Jensen had a rough patch after Leeloo was born, a baby blues that lasted a couple of weeks, and Jared had trouble adjusting to it –or even understanding what Jensen was going through. It had taken Jensen’s sister, Mack, to corner him and explain to him how difficult it was for Jensen, and no, Jared might not have been able to understand, but he could more supportive.

They are close. Practically living together now –at Jensen’s place, because Jared's bachelor apartment doesn't work at all for two men and a baby. Learning how to be with each other, without butting heads too much. At the beginning, when Jensen had been so sad and hesitant all the time after his daughter’s birth, Jared had not been only scared to lose him, but to lose Leeloo as well. He knows he doesn’t have any rights, but he feels like she’s a little bit his too –you don’t help a child be born and not feel a link between you and her – the fact that she also happens to be the daughter of a man you’re crazy in love with, makes the thought of losing her unbearable. At the same time, Jared is trying to find the right balance in his relationship with her. Taking care of her has never felt like helping Jensen out, giving him a hand –more like it was what Jared was supposed to do, like he’s a tiny bit like a second father to her. Those thoughts, he hasn’t shared them with Jensen yet, but he knows that as their relationship progress, they will have to talk about it.

Jared is so lost in his thoughts he only sees Jensen walking down the sidewalk when he’s less than ten feet away from him. As usual, he carries Leeloo in a kangaroo pouch –it’s supposed to encourage the bond between a parent and his child- and all Jared can see is the tip of the little girl’s bright yellow hat peeking out from the thick piece of cloth Jensen wears across his chest. 

Jared waves with the coffee paper cup he’s holding, and Jensen’s smile is, as always, astonishing, even from a distance. It’s Jared that walks the few feet that still keeps them apart. He wants to be the one showing Jensen the new sign for the shop.

He wraps an arm around his boyfriend’s shoulder and tilts his head to kiss him, before taking a look at Leeloo, who’s sleeping safe and sound, her heart-shaped mouth quirked into an adorable pout. She has Jensen’s eyes and lips, but her nose is pointier, and her skin a tad darker, which isn’t difficult, giving Jensen’s fair complexion. Some strands of hair have escaped from the hat: they've remained dark brown, and they are thick and straight. Jared rarely thinks about the other biological father –it seems unimportant to him –a simple sperm donor that had probably been in need of some cash. Jensen doesn’t seem to bother either, but he does think about a time when Leeloo will be old enough to ask questions, and wonders what he’s going to tell her.

“She hadn’t slept this afternoon,” Jensen whispers, accepting the cup Jared is giving him with the satisfied expression Jared has learned to associate with Jensen and pleasure –getting ready to make love or to drink coffee seems to be the same. Jared sometimes wonders if he should worry about it.

“Really?”

“Those red patches on her butt made her cranky,” Jensen goes on, adjusting his body gently from left to right. “She’s too young to be cutting a tooth, even though she has all the symptoms. I’m a little worried.”

“Does she have a fever?”

They start to walk in together toward the coffee shop. 

“No. I took her temp like… three times. Maybe it’s just one of those days.”

“Maybe…”

Jared feels bad for her, can’t wait for his day to be over, so he can be with the both of them, giving Leeloo her milk and rocking her in the huge armchair that seems like it’s been made for him in Jensen’s living room. They've both had a busy week, and Jared would be lying if he didn’t admit he’s equally impatient to cuddle Jensen in bed and sleep with his lover as close to him as possible.

“So, ready for the surprise?” he asks when they reach their destination.

“What surprise? You never mentioned any surprise,” Jensen says, excitement clear in his voice. Sometimes, he has this childish temperament, and it’s one of the things Jared adores about him. It’s so easy to make him laugh, to surprise him, to show him how much he loves him. Jensen’s eyes are expressive, and when they get that clear and bright, it’s wonder you can read in them.

“Look up,” Jared says, positioning Jensen far enough from the coffee shop entrance that he can see the sign without breaking his neck.

The old sign had been a simple rectangle of wood, painted a peachy, creamy color, with brown square letters announcing “Café Lilou.” It’s now an oval, stylish cut-out, made from a block of maple, and the name has been painted by hand, black, curvy letters giving it a softer look. It says Café _Leeloo_ now.

“Oh, my god, wow…” Jensen says, smiling wide. “When did you… How… You did it for her?” He asks, pointing at his sleeping daughter, like it’s surprising Jared would make such a gesture. 

“Of course. She was born here. She deserves for my shop to be named after her.”

“But she was named after your shop,” Jensen objects, still looking at the new sign in wonder.

“Yeah, it’s like those time travel paradoxes,” Jared goes on, wrapping his arm around Jensen’s waist. “Which is cool, right? She was named after the café, then I renamed the café after her.Anyway, the new clients never knew how to pronounce it correctly, so problem solved. And I… I really, really wanted to do it.”

“I love it,” Jensen declares. “And if I didn’t have a baby stuck to my chest I would jump you and kiss you silly right in the middle of the street.”

They both stare at the sign for a few minutes, then Jared invites Jensen inside, scared that the baby might get cold –even if it’s still warm outside, he’s learned a lot about newborns in three months, and he knows that since they don’t move much, they’re way more sensitive to the cold. It's even gotten to a point where Jensen makes fun of him for being such a mother hen.

For some reason, hearing this coming from Jensen secretly pleases Jared.

They walk inside, and of course, Emily drops what she was doing to welcome Jensen and have a look at the baby. Jensen is a member of their small family here at Café Leeloo, and Jared is always content when he sees him sitting at a table, speaking with an employee or another regular client, with his daughter in his arms or sleeping in her stroller nearby. In those moment, it feels like Jared’s life really is complete.

He’s going to finish his work for the day, and the three of them will head back to Jensen’s place, the way it happens so often. And Jared will try to enjoy every moment, because you never know what the future has in reserve, but as hard as he tries, he can’t bring himself to worry. The life he’s building with Jensen and Leeloo feels too right.

A/N: _The Labor and delivery Jensen experiences in this story is something that can happen in RL. It is sometimes refered as, in french, "accoucher comme une chatte" which translate litterally as "giving birth like a cat" meaning that female cats often gives birth very easily and without a lot of pain. It is rare but it happens and is often coupled with a precipitate delivery._

_Jensen's androcologist, Dr. Capaldi, with his bushy eyebrows, is a personnal shout out to Peter Capaldi, the actor who currently plays Dr. Who, and for whom I have a lot of affection, even though my Jensen doesn't seem to appreciate him. :D_

_Happy holidays!_


End file.
